


A New Quest:Her Heart

by pensivequeen



Category: Persona 3
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Eventual Romance, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:33:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22776463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pensivequeen/pseuds/pensivequeen
Summary: Akihiko always thought he'd never needed a girlfriend, since he was too busy with his aim to be stronger to protect others, but that changes when Minako Arisato, a junior, transferred to Gekkoukan High.
Relationships: Arisato Minako/Sanada Akihiko
Kudos: 21





	1. Quest:Rumour Investigation

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first fanfic of my favourite couple from Persona 3 Portable! Hopefully this can be enjoyable to read, I'm not a very good writer myself and my vocabulary is pretty bad, so expect a lot of words to be repeated. I was inspired by fanart and other fanfics to write this fic. Hopefully you all enjoy this fic! This doesn't follow the Persona 3 calendar and I don't care. (Persona 3 belongs to ATLUS) I'll be updating this as much as possible

"Where have you been?" Akihiko would often question Minako after she's returned to the dorm late at night. Minako would always return with a smile or just a simple,"Was doing stuff." Akihiko knew that Minako always had a tight schedule, with all her activities and such, volleyball, library commitee, student council, everything pretty much. He liked her enthusiasm and her cheerful attitude, her biggest trait though, is her big smile on her face. Those rosy cheeks are just waiting to be pinched, the grey haired senior always thought. They've hung out a few times already, but they just spent time eating at Hagakure or the Beef Bowl place. He looked over to the kitchen, seeing her rummaging through the fridge. Since he wanted to know Minako a bit more, he wanted to walk to school with her. The champion mustered up all his courage and put down his boxing gloves and walked up to the brunette.  
  
"H-hey, Minako. Do you want to walk to school with me tommorow?" The senior said, obviously flustered, avoiding her eye and has a slight blush on his face.  
  
"I'd love to senpai! Oh... Um, senpai... You're face is red, are you sick..?" She bent her body to have a look at his face, but he turns away to avoid eye contact.  
  
"Senpai, you can tell me what's wrong. I'm worried about you." The red-vested boxer turns his head and looks at Minako's face, the brown-haired junior was pouting, but when they're eyes connected, she put on her signature smile.  
  
"M-Minako... I'm fine. No need to worry about me." He said while looking down at his shoes.  
  
"Are you suuure? Cause I know you love me." She teased, oh boy does she love teasing him.  
  
"Wh- Minako- I-" His blushed intensified, he couldn't get a word out, even if he tried, he'd stutter.  
  
"Awh.. Don't worry. I'm just teasing you, no need to confess, alright? Well, it's getting late, we should go to bed, alright senpai? Goodnight!"  
  
The junior rushed up to her room, leaving her senior in a state of utter shock.  
  
"M-Minako... I do love you..." The frozen senior mumbled under his breath, he retreated to his room.

 **\----AKIHIKO'S DORM ROOM----  
**The senior lied down on his bed, small tears rolling down his face, he wiped his eyes.  
  
"Dammit, Minako... I can't stop thinking about you day and night..."

"If... If only I was strong enough..." Akihiko cried himself to sleep, dreaming about Minako.

 **\----6AM DORM LOUNGE----  
**As Akihiko comes down the stairs in his uniform, ready to go, he sees Minako standing by the dorm entrance, mp3 player on, focused on the music. The young girl was bouncing to her music, eyes closed.  
  
"Minako." Akihiko tries to catch her attention, but she's too sucked into her music. The senior decides to rub his gloved hand on her hair.  
  
  
"H-huh..?" Minako takes off her headphones and looks up at her senior. "S-s-Senpai? Wh-why are you?" She blushes at his gesture, but she doesn't seem uncomfortable.  
  
"O-Oh! Minako... Um..." He awkwardly says, as he takes his hand off her head. "I-I'm sorry-"  
  
"No, it's fine. You can do it any time you want,senpai." The brunette grabs his hand, the blush on his face intensifies, he just wants to hide his face.  
  
"Well, we should go senpai. We don't want to be late, right?" She smiles at him and runs out the door while still holding his hand.  
  
"Y-You're right..."  
  
**\----GEKKOUKAN HIGH, NEAR** GATES----  
"Hey, senpai. Say, you have a large fanbase of girls, yet you just ignore them. Do you have something against them?" Minako stopped and looked at Akihiko.  
  
"I mean, I don't have anything against them per se, but it's just, I guess they're annoying. And I don't think I need a girlfriend." The senior scratches the back of his neck, obviously taken aback by this question.  
  
"So, you don't need a girlfriend, huh. So I guess I can say you're not attracted to any girls. Well the gates nearby, so we should continue walking."  
  
"I'm attracted to you though..." He murmured quietly, not enough for Minako to hear, though she hears some sound.  
  
"Hm? You said something senpai?" She turns around and looks at Akihiko.  
  
"U-Um... It's nothing." He's blushing again and looking away from her.

As they near the gates, all the fangirls are waiting for Akihiko, but they see him walking side-by-side with Minako, and they glare at her intensely, but she completely ignores them. They stop at the shoe lockers.  
  
"Hey senpai! It's Friday today right? That means you're free, right?"  
  
"Um.. Yea... Wanna hang out?"  
  
"Of course! I'll meet you after school, alright? See you later!"  
  
The joy-filled crimson-eyed junior ran to her classroom.  
  
"If only... I could confess to her..."  
  
"Omg! Akihiko-senpai~!"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Suddenly, a hoard of fangirl start surrounding him. They're all screaming and squealing until, some girl spoke up.  
  
"Why're you hanging out with Junpei's girlfriend! She's already taken, you should totally hang out with us!"  
  
Hearing that left the boxer in shock, but he quickly pushed through and bolted to his classroom. As he was walking up the steps, he thought to himself, "Junpei's girlfriend? There's no way..."  
  
As he passed by the 2nd floor hallway's staircase, he looks over at the end of the hallway and sees Minako with Yukari and Junpei, he has a sullen expression on his face as he continues his way to his classroom. He clenched his fist out of anger, and promised himself that he would ask Minako about it afterschool.  
  
The final bell rings and Minako stands up and stretches before packing her things.  
  
"Well! I'm off to see Akihiko-senpai, so I'll see you three at the dorm!" The joyful girl rushes out the door.  
  
"Hey, Yuka-tan, Ai-chan. She's been hanging out with Akihiko-senpai a lot lately, you think they're up to something?"  
  
"I doubt it, Stupei. They're probably just hanging out cause they're friends."  
"My duty is to protect Minako at all cost, but since I know Akihiko-san is trusted, I don't mind."  
  
The brown-haired junior rushes to Akihiko's usual spot, she takes the other staircase so that she doesn't have to run around the school to meet him. As she descends the staircases, she sees his coat and his red vest.  
  
"Senpai! I'm here!" She sneaks up on him while he was checking his watch.  
  
"M-Minako...?" He turned around to see her giving a big smile.  
  
"Awh.. I expected a better reaction. But whatever! I'm happy as long as I'm with you! Let's get going, senpai! Or your fangirls will be waiting by the gates!" She said it with no hesitation, rosy cheeks were glowing like light. The senior's had a faint blush forming across his face, and looked away to avoid her from seeing his blush.  
  
"Uh-Uhm.. Yea, we should get going..." He turned back to her, grabbed her hand and walked towards the school gate.  
  
"S-Senpai..." The brunette blushed as her senior held her hand while walking towards the gate.  
  
When they were near the dorm, Akihiko stopped suddenly.  
  
"Senpai? Something wrong?" Minako questioned him, but he wouldn't respond. He's been like this for the entire time. Minako thought to herself. "Did I do something to make him mad..?"  
  
"Listen." Akihiko says in a serious tone without looking at her.  
  
"What do you mean senpai? Did I d-"  
  
"Shut up..." He cut her off before she could finish her sentence. She frowned, but was also confused why he'd act like that. The champion turned around and faced Minako and firmly gripped her shoulders, not realizing how much strength he's using.  
  
"If you don't want to tell me, that's fine. Let me get straight to the point. Are you dating Junpei?" He asked, almost like he's scolding Minako.  
  
"Wh-what?! No, of course not! Why would I be dating him, when I can date people like you... or Shinjiro-senpai..." She, without any shame, said that outloud.  
  
Akihiko looks down at his shoes as he loosens he grip on Minako's shoulders. He looks back up and sees Minako still smiling at him, even though he just confronted her about a false claim.  
  
"Minako... I-I'm sorry."  
  
"No, don't worry. These rumors are stupid. Don't get the wrong idea. Well we're right by the dorm, we should just forget this happened and move on. Okay?"  
  
"M-Minako..." 


	2. Quest:Confession

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos, here's chapter 2. I've been working my ass off.

"You're weak, Aki." Shinjiro always said whenever Akihiko always told him about something.

"Weak..?"

"Don't you think you were too harsh on her? At this rate, I'm 99% sure she'll reject you, even though she's quick to forgive, she still might be affected by that. You might wanna make up for it."

"You're right. I'll make it up for her tommorow..."

"If you're planning to confess, come to me, I'll help you." The beanie-wearing senior faced Akihiko as he slammed the door shut.

"Confess.. huh..."

The senior was baffled by his own decision, did he really need a girlfriend? He really likes Minako and her personality, even her looks. Though he'd never experience anything about "love". This is all new to him. Anytime he tries to think of confessing to her, he just ends up thinking the worst, rejection. But would she really? Minako does love spending time with her upperclassmen, especially Akihiko.

"Senpai? Are you in here?" A knock on the door is heard, it sounds like Minako's voice.

"M-Minako? Yea, I'm here." The champion walked towards the door and opened it.

"Hey sen-"

"Minako... You're hair, it's down... You usually have the ponytail even on Sundays." Noticing the junior without her hair in her usual ponytail.

"Oh yea... about that. Well um, I have to run some errands and Shinjiro-senpai gave me a long list so care to join me?"

"O-Of course."

"Well, it's settled. I'll see you at the dorm entrance. Alright?" The brunette ran across the hallway to the flight of stairs.

Whenever the two of them were talking, and Akihiko was gonna say something, she'd always run away to do something else. He had the impression that Minako didn't like him, but she always cared for him and loved spending her free time with him. She also wasn't afraid of being physical, would it be holding his hand, or carressing his face. He felt that he should give himself time before making any further progress.

\----Dorm Lounge----  
Minako was casually waiting at the dorm lounge for Akihiko to come down. When she heard the footsteps she immediately stood up and paced towards him. She could see the faint blush that would start to form on his face.

"Akihiko-senpai! Took you long enough. What took you so long?" She pouted at him and looked straight in his eyes.

"I-I uh... Nevermind..."

"Come on, tell me. I know you love me~!" She gleefully smiled at him, in her teasing voice.

"Wait- What?!" His blush deepened to a deep red colour.

"Heehee... Just teasing ya! Come on let's go!" The excited junior grabbed her senior's hand and rushed outside.

\----Iwatodai Strip Mall----

As they were in the strip mall, Minako was still holding his hand.

"Senpa- Oh, I'm still holding your hand. Uhm. Sorry about tha-"

"No, it's fine. I like it." Akihiko interjected before grabbing both of Minako's hands together.

"S-Senpai..." The brunette looked down at the floor, her face heating up, heart is jumping, blood rushing to her face.

"We should go buy the things we need quick."

"Y-Yeah."

\----Dorm Lounge----

"Tadaima!" Akihiko and Minako said after returning to the dorm.

"Welcome back." Mitsuru greeted them as they walked in, reading a college-leveled script.

Minako saw Koromaru with Aigis and Ken, Shinjiro just standing near the wall, as per usual. Yukari, Fuuka and Junpei near the dining table. She turned on her heel to face Akihiko, smiling at him

"Tommorrows Monday, so you're free after school, right?"

"U-Um... Yea, of course. You wanna, uh-uhm hangout tommorow?"

"Mhm! Well, I'm going to bed. Good night!"

"W-wait! I'm going to bed too."

Minako went upstairs while Akihiko followed her, they parted ways and exchanged "goodnights" as the junior continued to climb the stairs. The boxer sighed and walked to his room with his head facing down. He opened his door and immediately sat on his desk. On his desk, he pulled out a pink bunny plushie, he planned on giving it to Minako sometime, but he doesn't know when.

"I can't take it anymore... I need to protect her... I don't want to lose her." The champion slammed his fist on the desk.

"I should... probably make it a surprise. I'll write her a note and put it in her shoe locker, probably." He grabs a pencil and paper, and starts writing a small note to slip into her shoe locker.

"That should be enough..." He puts the note in his bag and goes to sleep. While sleeping, he seems uncomfortable, tossing and turning, nervous, obviously. It wasn't until... he had THIS nightmare.  
\-------------------------------------------  
(Written in Akihiko's POV)  
It was a sunny afternoon, the sun shining bright on the Gekkoukan High rooftop. Minako and I on the rooftop, my cheeks, in a very red tone, my face was heating up intensely.

"Tell me what you need to say. Are you mad?" Minako asks me concerningly.

"Wh-what? Of course not! Um... so!"

"I'll get straight to the point. Will you be my girl?" I ask with no sense of hesistation. The look of confusion and shock on Minako's face could not be described.

"U-Um.... Senpai.... I'm sorry but...."  
\--------------------------------------------

"Gah!" Akihiko woke up from his dream, sweating and breathing heavily. He looked at the clock and it says '4:30 am'

"Oh. I should go for my morning jog now..." He stands up from his bed and changes into his training gear, and walks down the stairs. However, as he passes the kitchen, he sees the brown ponytail sticking out.

"Minako?" He calls out

"Mhm? Senpai? You're going for your morning jog?"

"Uh-uhm... Yea..." He looks away from her, clearly that image of getting rejected could not be erased. The young girl watches as her senior walks out the door.

"I should get more sleep..." She says to herself, she grabs a quick glass of water and heads back to her room.

\----Gekkuokan High----  
"Ugh, that Stupei was so annoying last night, y'know he- Oh we're already at the shoe lockers, well I'll see you at class. I have to talk to a few teachers. See ya!" Yukari waved goodbye at Minako, both of them walked to school together.

"See ya! Hm- Huh?" Minako turned to her shoe locker and saw a note in her shoes.

"Meet on the roof at lunch? I wonder who wrote this..." She took the note and stuffed it in her pocket and just casually walked to class like normal. As she walked into the classroom, as she stepped in though, she heard a few voices.

"Omg, I heard Akihiko-senpai put something in someone's locker, listen, if it's a girl we need to find that girl."

"Obviously, she should know that Akihiko-senpai is everyone's. Not her's."

"If she has any ulterior motives, we need to stop her."

"Oh god...." The brunette thought as she took her seat.

"Yo! Mina-tan. You're expression is a little bit off today, something happened?" Junpei happily approached her noticing her expression.

"Oh, it's nothing really. Just y'know... Those girls..." She gently whispered to the cap-wearing junior.

"You mean Akihiko-senpai putting something in someone's shoe locker?"

"About that..." She looked to the side. Homeroom starts and it's boring as ever.

\----Lunchtime-----  
The lunch bell rings and Minako stands up.

"Hey, Minako! Where are you going?" Yukari asks.

"Oh, well. I gotta explain some things. Ok, firstly. I got this note when I was changing my shoes. It was just in my locker." Minako hands hands her friend the note.

"Huh? Someone gave you a note? A mean it's not surprising considering, your uhm. Y'know your status."

"Hey. Yuka-tan, Mina-tan. What's this commotion about?"

"Ugh, Stupei, you just had to come at this moment." She hands Minako back the note. "Well, considering that, I think you should go to the rooftop now."

"I mean, yea of course. Well, I'll see you all later then." The brunette walks out of the classroom and walks up the steps.

As Minako opened the door to the rooftop, she saw a familiar silver-haired boy, staring out into the horizon. She slowly walked towards him.

"A-Akihiko-senpai?!"

"Ah. So you did come, huh..."

"Um... So, what did you want from me?" The junior looked down at her feet, trying to hide her slight blush.

"O-Oh. Um.. I needed to tell you something.." Minako looked at his face, his face begins to heat up, and he feels the blood rushing up. He's too nervous to tell her what he wants to say, and just ended up looking at her beautiful red eyes.

"S-Senpai, what did you need? Are you mad at me?"

"Wh-what? Of course not! U-Um..." The brunette was swaying from side to side, with her hands behind her back, waiting for her senpai to give a response.

"You know what happened to my sister right?" The crimson-eyed girl nodded.

"Well... For the longest time, I thought I was seeing her in you. But I found out that's just not the case anymore, everytime I'm with you, I always start to feel awkward and on edge, and I just have this urge to always protect you... It's really weird." Akihiko's blush deepening more as he continues.

"Senpai... You're in love." Minako holds both of his hands together.

"L-Love? Th-this is love?"

"Haha... Well, it already slipped out but... Will you be my girl?" His heart racing, awaiting her response.

"Senpai...." His heart stopped as she paused from saying her sentence.

"Yes... I'd love to be your girl." The blushing junior came closer as she held Akihiko's hands in her own. The senior smiled and blushed harder than ever.

"R-Really?!" He shouted excitedly, and proceeded to pull her into a tight hug, Minako returned the hug.

"O-Oh! Sorry." He releases her from the hug and carresses her cheeks. "This got awkward all of a sudden... Well, here's hoping for the best?"

"Yea. Well it's lunchtime is gonna end soon so..."

"W-Wait."

"Yea, senpai?"

"Here, uhm... This is for you..." He hands her a pink bunny plushie, on it's belly, Minako's name is written on it. "Don't you think it looks like you?"

"Senpai... Thank you... Well, we should get to class, don't want to be late, right?"


End file.
